Vellutino

Class D Power Amplifiers

These amplifiers are based on a recent generation of Class D amplifier modules. Class D operation offers the advantage of lower power consumption than traditional Class AB operation. As a result, no costly heat sinks are needed to dissipate heat, as there is essentially no heat to dissipate. This also allows for a clean mechanical design, unencumbered by sharp, pointed heat sink fins.

However, in the past, Class D operation was not regarded as being worthy of audiophile consideration. With the new generation of Class D amplifier modules, they now are a serious option for audiophiles. We are pleased to be among the first to produce products using these new technologies.

In Italian, the word "velluto" means velvet. Italian audiophiles reserve the term to describe a superlative sounding product, one that is worthy of such praise. We are very proud of our new amplifiers, and the initial response that listeners had when first hearing them inspired the name.

The "ino" suffix refers to something that is cute and/or diminutive. Indeed, this is a very small package that houses a tremendous amount of listening enjoyment, at a very low price.

The Vellutino was envisioned for use in Home Theater applications where a large, heavy cumbersome amplifer would simply not fit. We decided to make a small, yet high-performance amplifier that could be placed next to the speakers, without taking up an appreciable amount of floor space. Since 5 amplifiers would needed in a Home Theater system, we knew that it was necessary to keep the cost as low as possible. The challenge was to do so without sacrificing performance. The most obvious place to start is the chassis department. A readily available, and affordable, unit that is small was chosen for this task. As the units will must likely be not be in a highly visible location, we are confident that such a chassis can be used for such situations.

As such, in order to fit all of the required circuitry in a case of that size, we opted to use a different amplifier topology than in the Velluto

Vellutino

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